THE SONY HACKING SCANDAL CONTINUES: RELEASE OF THE INTERVIEW CANCELLED
New revelations from the devastating Sony hacking have been coming in full force this week, with everything from producer Scott Rudin’s unsavoury opinions of Angelina Jolie to screenwriter Aaron Sorkin’s arguably narrow-minded views on the talents of every actress that isn’t Meryl Streep or Helen Mirren, coming into focus. However, the latest news to hit headlines is about the controversial film that ‘The Guardians of Peace’ claim is at the heart of their discontent – Seth Rogen’s comedy The Interview. It has been announced, that due to security threats by the hackers, as well as the disobliging response from a number of cinema chains in the US, the film’s release is to be postponed until further notice, and it’s Hollywood Premiere has also been cancelled.
The film, also starring James Franco, is about a celebrity journalist and his producer who after getting an interview with Korean leader Kim Jong Un, are ordered by the CIA to assassinate him. It is widely assumed that the origins of the cyber attack on Sony stem back to North Korea, however US Security forces are yet to confirm this. Many entertainers have responded angrily to the decision to pull The Interview from audiences, with figures like Judd Apatow, Jimmy Kimmel and Steve Carrell all tweeting their discontent. Plans to play Team America: World Police (a film by the creators of South Park that similarly mocks North Korean dictatorship dubaidesignweek) instead have also been scuppered, which leads us to a very worrying outcome – bigger than the catty emails we’ve been reading about. Our rights to freedom of expression are being challenged and actively quashed by terrorists. As George Clooney has said on the matter; “This affects not just movies, this affects every part of business that we have. That’s the truth.”
GOLDEN GLOBE NOMINATIONS ANNOUNCED
Awards Season is truly hotting up now, as earlier this week actors Jeremy Piven and Kate Beckinsale announced the nominees for this year’s Golden Globes. The golden gongs, which are to be awarded in January and celebrate the best of both film and TV, usually pinpoint the main contenders for the biggest awards, such as the BAFTAs and the Oscars, later in the year. Among the nominations, there is some stiff competition from our very own industry with British actors such as Benedict Cumberbatch (The Imitation Game), Rosamund Pike (Gone Girl), Eddie Redmayne and Felicity Jones (both in The Theory of Everything) up for some of the big acting awards in the drama categories. Films such as Boyhood, Birdman and Into The Woods are also up for some of the biggest film gongs. The rest of the nominations for the 72nd Golden Globes can be found here, and the ceremony, hosted by Tina Fey and Amy Poehler is set to take place on January 11th.
THE DIVERGENT SERIES: INSURGENT TRAILER HAS ARRIVED
Veronica Roth’s dystopian novels have proved a big hit amongst young adult audiences, with the adaptation of the first in the trilogy – Divergent – reaching the number one spot at the Box Office in it’s opening weekend. This week, the trailer for the second installment of the series was released. Insurgent sees Shailene Woodley’s bad-ass heroine, Tris Prior on the run. With her partner Four and brother Caleb (Theo James and Ansel Elgort respectively), also in tow, Tris is determined to figure out the secret that her former faction Abnegation sacrificed their lives to protect – a secret that Erudite will stop at nothing to prevent from coming out. Janine, the menacing Erudite leader who started the uprising (played by Kate WInslet), is also after Tris – still obsessed by the incredulous powers of her divergent personality. And as we see in the trailer – it looks like Tris may not only have to fight against the rebellion, but a relentless version of herself. An exciting new chapter to one of the most stimulating YA adapatations out there, The Divergent Series: Insurgent is set to be released 20th March 2015.
Also this week:
- Iron Man’s new suit in Avengers: Age of Ultron was revealed by Hot Toys
- The first piece of concept art from Jon Favreau’s Jungle Book was released
- Jurassic World director Colin Trevorrrow posted a new image of Chris Pratt and a Velociraptor side by side on Twitter
- The National Film Registry’s list of films to be preserved in 2014 included The Big Lebowski, Ferris Bueller’s Day Off and Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory.
Words by Annie